Deputy Minister of Mines and Natural Resources, Hon. Richard Musukwa has told a meeting of investors in London that the recent policy change on the sale of Zambian emeralds is aimed at ensuring that the proceeds of the precious resource benefits the local people.
Addressing various concerns on the changes in the mining sector, Hon. Musukwa said it was wrong to suggest that the decision to compel Kagem Mine (Zambia’s leading emerald miner) to include Zambia on the Auction Circuit, is meant to stiffle the company operations.
To the contrary, the minister explained, the Zambian government (which owns a 25 percent stake in Kagem), wanted to bring about equity in the distribution of benefits from the precious stones sector.
“We are making Kagem more viable, we are growing the local gems market and increase Zambian participation in the auctions. Zambians must rise to this challenge. We want to re-establish the rapidaries and promote cutting and polishing of the gems locally,” he said.
“Obviously this may not sound good to those wishing to maintain the status quo (of auctioning Zambian emeralds gems abroad only). Our aim is to see value-addition on the Zambian gems. I urge international partners to support the Lusaka auctions in the same way they support Kagem’s international auctions.”
The inclusion of Zambia on the Auction Circuit would result in massive investments into host communities.
The changes will also help government curb secondary and illegal dealers who are undermining both the industry and the government in terms of tax losses due to evasion.
WELL SPOKEN SIR. MMD LEFT THIS POTENTIAL SOURCE OF OUR MUCH NEEDED REVENUE TO CROOOOKS. EMERALD IS A PRECIOUS MINERAL WHICH COSTS MORE THAN DIAMOND SO THE GVT NEED TO HAVE SOME CONTROL OVER THIS BUSINESS FOR THE BENEFIT OF ZAMBIANS. THOSE WHO WANT TO PULL OUT OF THE BUSINESS LET THEM DO SO, BETTER WE REMAIN WITH DEPOSITS IN THE SOIL THAN GIVE IT OUT TO CROOOKS.
Viva Hon Musakwa
Go to Botswana and see how they guard their diamonds. We are still porous with our gemstones, copper cobalt, etc. But why have we failed to really manage our resources. Simple simple audit procedures can be done easily. So many unemployed people whom we can employ just in the monitoring of our resources. We have had shushushuz in political governance. We need such shushushuz in protecting our natural resources especially minerals like Gemstones. Lets get to fundamentals surely! Simple monitoring of who mines what, where does it goes, how much is raised out of it, and what comes back to Zambia. These are very basic things if all of us were that patriotic citizens. I hope PF will help once corruption is stumped out.
The Nigeria Football Federation has withdrawn its team from the 2014 African Nations Championship qualifiers due to financial constraints.
Nice suit! Serious…. it looks like the only difference between the deputy minister and a schoolboy is that he has stopped wearing the tie around his forehead.
(Btw – when you buy a suit off the rack, you are meant to cut the manufacturer’s label from the sleeve!)
It will be interesting to compare the result of the local auction to the international auctions.
Kagem is not the only emerald producer in Zambia; where do Kamakanga and others auction their emeralds?
oh please… #4, what do you think of the change in the policy on the sale of Zambian emeralds?
There are only 3 major producers of emeralds in the world: Brazil, Colombia and Zambia, and Zambia produces annually 30% to 38% imagine, varying from year to year. The change in police is clearly an expression of regaining national self-confidence by the Zambian govt. If us, non-Zambians who do not produce emerald
benefit so much from it just by having access to the so called international markets why shouldn’t Zambians control and consequently benefit from their own product? In my home country SA we have so many natural resources, like in any African country, but which go over the heads of the common man and woman…lets wake up Africa, thank you zambian govt. for this move.
First of all,the change of policy is overdue;we should do all our auctions in Lusaka to give opportunity our people to participate in these auctions.People become creatives when they are exposed to something,this will be part of jobs creation through local and international visitors coming for those auctions.The government has just to create very conducive platforms such as exhibitions,shows etc.. to educate our communities for their benefits…..
I do agree with Dumidzani’s comments.It’s high time ,we get in charge of our resources.Some zambians don’t even know how the emeralds look like and they can’t even afford a simple necklace made of emeralds because it becomes too expensive when it comes back from wherever…
Why is it that our journalists do not write up balanced articles, there is always two sides of a story and it would have been better to cover Gemfields side of the argument. Below is section of an article on this selfsame story by Reuters;
“Gemfields has got around 20 percent of the world’s (emerald) market, which comes from Zambia,” Chief Operating Officer Dev Shetty told Reuters.
“Not allowing Gemfields to auction abroad is going to take us out of the competition with Brazil and Colombia, which holds 30 percent each of the world’s supply of emeralds,” Shetty said.
S.P. Angel analyst Carole Ferguson, however, said Zambia was trying to flex its muscles.
“It’s just a matter of negotiating with the government – I don’t see how the government could realistically expect them…
Cont’d
(Gemfields) to have all the auctions in Zambia and generate the type of revenue they’re generating,” Ferguson told Reuters.
Gemfields, owner of the Fabergé luxury jewellery brand, said it would host an auction in Lusaka this month and that its next foreign auction was scheduled to take place in Singapore in June. Zambia owns the rest of Kagem.
You cannot buy Panadol for your hospitals and miraculously you will have money to buy Emeralds for cutting!. The Botswana example been cited is misplaced. Botswana to start with produces 35% or $5bn of world’s traded gem diamonds. So they used this as a leverage to train the local human resource in cutting. This is a process that began in the 1990s. Once the local manpower they made an agreement with DeBeers in 2006 to have the sorting, cutting and trading of diamonds to be moved from London to Gaborone by 2011. Zambia on the other hand produces only $200m or 20% of Emeralds. The other 80% is mainly produced by Brazil and Colombia. Kagem used to produce less than $10m worth of Emeralds before Gemfields came in 2008. Now Gemfields produces $80 to $100m annually.
The Communists are back in power again. Kaundaism is a failed economic philosophy. You will fail again!
mmmmm…. miss kama sutra whatever,
are you serious?
anyway, good move pf govt.
only go a step further by reviewing operations of some of these mines and their directors.
i have gunatsi in mind here….
Miss Kama Sutra shouting about communism is childish – are you some kind of American pensioner? Gemfields may have done a great job of growing the market, but the market (like with copper) needs to be designed to properly benefit the owners of the resource, i.e. the Zambian people. It’s not about blame or ideological positions, it’s a simple, practical fact. It may be a difficult job but at least somebody is trying to do it
Moderator? Gemfields may have done a great job of growing the market, but the market (like with copper) needs to be designed to properly benefit the owners of the resource, i.e. the Zambian people. It’s not about blame or ideological positions, it’s a simple, practical fact. It may be a difficult job but at least somebody is trying to do it
hmm I wonder what I said to get moderated lol
This is a good move by government and long over due. This will get the price of Zambian emerald to where it belongs. Zambia has the best emeralds in the world but because of no controls on the sale of the gem stone and no control on cut and polishing its the least in pricing. So the move by government will increase the price of the Zambian Emerald to be at number one in the world in its price as its beauty is number one already. Its good the local people will also be able to benefit just as the people of Botswana benefit from the diamonds.